According to the RZA, the Wu-Tang Clan had a “weekly Wu Wednesday call” throughout the making of their Hulu biopic. “Good, bad or ugly, we discussed we talked, I filled them in,” the RZA, born as Robert Diggs, who co-created the series alongside Alex Tse, said after a screening at Hulu’s Paleyfest event in Los
September 10, 2019 10:16PM PT An ex-boxer is caught between family obligations and criminal associations in this gritty West Ireland-set tale. Films set in West Ireland often have a tourist board-certified feel, selling the scenery and quaintness in ways designed to make you ring up your travel agent (if those still existed). But no one
September 10, 2019 10:01PM PT In this week’s edition of the Variety Movie Commercial Tracker, powered by the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company iSpot.tv, Twentieth Century Fox claims the top spot in spending for the second week in a row with “Ad Astra.” Ads placed for the sci-fi film had an estimated media
“H is for Happiness” was a popular winner on the first Saturday of September at the CinefestOZ festival in Western Australia. Not only is the picture uplifting — a 12-year-old girl who is inspired by an unusual new boy at her school and challenges herself to mend her broken family – “Happiness” was made locally,
September 10, 2019 8:42PM PT Eddie Murphy, director Craig Brewer and the cast of “Dolemite Is My Name” swung by the Variety Studio over the weekend to talk about their Rudy Ray Moore biopic. When asked about how much progress Hollywood has made since the days Moore, who struggled mightily in the 1970s to get
When you see photographs of Harriet Tubman (and many exist), she appears, in an eerie way, to be staring right at us. Her implacable scowl throws down a gauntlet that cuts across the ages. Cynthia Erivo, the British singer and actress who takes on the title role of “Harriet,” nails that thousand-yard glare with a
September 10, 2019 7:56PM PT Tom Hanks and the team behind “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” dropped by the Variety Studio over the weekend to discuss the new Mr. Rogers film, which premiered to rave reviews out of the Toronto Film Festival. Hanks was asked what he thought Mr. Rogers would say to children
September 10, 2019 7:40PM PT Bruce Beresford-Redman, an ex-producer of the reality television show “Survivor,” has been released from a Mexican prison after serving time for his wife’s murder. Beresford-Redman was sentenced to 12 years in prison after he was convicted of killing his wife Mónica Burgos in 2010 while on a family vacation at
In today’s TV news roundup, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow are among the celebrity contestants on “25 Words or Less.” Also, Ruby Rose, Sarah Snook and Dacre Montgomery will be honored at the Australian in Film Awards. CASTINGS Fox TV announced Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Chelsea Handler, Jane Lynch and Rick Fox are among the
Christian Bale seems extra-pleased with the casting of Robert Pattinson as the next Dark Knight. Speaking to Variety at the Toronto Film Festival on Sunday, Bale gave a thumbs up when asked about Pattinson joining the Bat family. “Good choice! He’s interesting,” Bale said. His “Ford v. Ferrari” co-star, Matt Damon, agreed. “Did you see
In today’s film news roundup, Brian Cox’s “The Etruscan Smile” and meditation documentary “The Portal” find homes and Lin-Manuel Miranda is backing a Spanish-language app. ACQUISITIONS Lightyear Entertainment has acquired North American rights to Brian Cox’s “The Etruscan Smile” and plans an Oscar-qualifying theatrical run in November in New York and Los Angeles. Lightyear is
September 10, 2019 6:30PM PT Netflix has entered into a long-term partnership with Indian filmmaker, producer and television personality Karan Johar’s Dharmatic Entertainment to create a range of new fiction and non-fiction series and films, the companies announced Wednesday. Alongside Anurag Kashyap, Zoya Akhtar and Dibakar Banerjee, Johar is one of the directors on the
Sonos’ new campaign for its Move speaker marks a few milestones for the home audio company. Not only is Move the first portable product in the Sonos portfolio, but its campaign assets will feature rare licensed appearances of artwork from iconic albums by Outkast, Radiohead and David Bowie, among many other artists. The campaign will
September 10, 2019 5:25PM PT With its bitter stalemate with agents in its fifth month, the Writers Guild of America is broadening its outreach to managers to make deals for members. “The WGA is expanding its online services to include connecting management companies with WGA members who are looking for new representation,” said an email
Ten years after first establishing a foothold in Nashville, BMG has officially opened a brand new complex on Music Row that brings together its formerly disparate operations — including its publishing, copyright and royalty operations, plus the BBR Music Group. The 36,000-square-foot building, located at 1 Music Circle South, houses what is now BMG’s third
September 10, 2019 4:40PM PT British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor has joined Mark Wahlberg in Paramount’s action thriller “Infinite,” with Antoine Fuqua directing. “Infinite” is produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Mark Vahradian at Di Bonaventura Pictures, and John Zaozirny. John Lee Hancock and Ian Shorr are adapting D. Eric Maikranz’s novel “The Reincarnationist Papers,” which
Mrs. Fletcher isn’t married — at least not anymore. The title character of HBO’s new limited series, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival Sept. 10 ahead of an October 27 bow, hasn’t gotten around to changing her name yet, either because it’s a final fraying thread tying her to her otherwise disconnected college-age
September 10, 2019 4:00PM PT John C. Reilly has joined the HBO pilot about the 1980s Showtime Lakers in a recasting. Reilly will play the role of former Lakers owner Jerry Buss, replacing Michael Shannon, who exited the project over creative differences. The character is described as a self-made millionaire whose success has only amplified
September 10, 2019 3:15PM PT Maz Jobrani’s life could be coming to the small screen as an animated comedy. Variety has learned exclusively that Fox has commissioned a pilot presentation and script for an animated comedy based on Jobrani and his family. The series would follow three generations of immigrants adjusting to life in America
Lionsgate Chief Executive Officer Jon Feltheimer offered a bullish outlook and pledged to seek an improved Wall Street profile for the company — which has seen its stock lose about half its value over the past year. Feltheimer spoke Tuesday at Lionsgate’s annual shareholders meeting in Vancouver and touted improved performances in film, television, talent management,
Tom Brady is now on TikTok: The New England Patriots QB, in his first post on the social-video service Tuesday, shared highlights from his Week 1 game day in which the Patriots trounced the Pittsburgh Steelers. His joining TikTok comes after the NFL last week announced a new multiyear pact with the service, owned by
September 10, 2019 2:51PM PT The death of a Hasidic man drives the demon who’d haunted him to find a new host in this modest but creepy ‘Jewish horror movie.’ Billed as a “Jewish horror movie,” Keith Thomas’ “The Vigil” doesn’t dive very deep into theology or even specific traditional superstitions in its tale of
Technology entrepreneur Sean Parker has made a “significant” investment in Peter Jackson’s Weta Digital special effects company. Parker and Jackson made the announcement jointly. They did not disclose the size of Parker’s investment or the specific role he would play. “I’ve long admired Peter Jackson’s and Fran Walsh’s work, and the ground-breaking VFX and animation
Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Weezer will be hitting the road as a triple bill in a summer 2020 tour that’s being booked into major ballparks, including L.A.’s Dodger Stadium July 25 and New York’s City Field August 22. The “Hella Mega Tour” kicks off with a European leg beginning June 13 in Paris.
September 10, 2019 2:19PM PT Leonardo DiCaprio furthers his environmental activism by co-producing this thin sports doc about the Formula E electric motorsport circuit. When asked about the founding of Formula E, a motorsport circuit that uses only electric cars, its current leader, a former Spanish politician named Alejandro Agag, lights a stogie and tells
Nameless cooks hustle in the opening montage of Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia’s brutalist nightmare “The Platform.” Their kitchen is a blend of the delicate and the savage. A violinist plays as blades rip through fish, and the head chef caresses a dangling ham. When finished, they’ve assembled a still-life masterpiece of lobster, papaya and cake on a
One of the biggest challenges facing the Prince Estate is what to release from the Vault next: With literally thousands of hours of studio and live outtakes spanning 40 years, there’s no shortage of top-shelf material to choose from. And after a deluxe edition of “Purple Rain,” the solo “Piano & a Microphone 1983” and
September 10, 2019 1:01PM PT In addition to introducing three new iPhone models and revealing key details about its video and game subscription services, Apple also announced a few other products at its phone event Tuesday. But just as notable were the things that were absent from Apple’s keynote presentation, despite many rumors about possible
September 10, 2019 12:59PM PT WME is seeking to dismiss the Writers Guild of America’s suit alleging packaging fees are illegal. Lawyers for the agency filed the motion late Monday in federal court in Los Angeles, asserting that the WGA has failed to state a claim under which relief can be granted and that the court
The old line you hear about certain authors — he’s as much of a character as anyone in his books! — doesn’t tend to be true even when we say it. Yet in Truman Capote’s case, it’s virtually an understatement. No character he created on the page ever gave off quite the magnetic damaged resonance